Cross-voting allegations trigger blame game within LDF in Kottayam

Key points

• Allegations of cross-voting within the Left Democratic Front (LDF), first raised by the Kerala Congress (M) [KC(M)], appears to have now escalated into an open and increasingly bitter blame game in Kottayam.
• Finding itself under mounting pressure within the alliance, the KC(M) has shifted into firefighting mode in an attempt to contain the controversy.
• The issue pertains to a post-election steering committee meeting of the party, where the leadership alleged that cross-voting by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] cadres contributed to the defeat of its candidates.
• However, both the CPI(M) and the Communist Party of India (CPI) have moved to counter the charge in their respective post-poll review meetings, arguing instead that their own candidates did not receive the expected support from the KC(M) voters.
• The CPI(M) district committee meeting in Kottayam went a step further, alleging that the KC(M) cadres cross-voted in Ettumanur and Puthuppally, where the...